The attestation of the gospel is Scripture (v2)
The substance of the gospel is Jesus Christ (v1,3)
The scope of the gospel is all the nations (v5)
The purpose of the gospel is the obedience of faith
The goal of the gospel is the honor of Christ’s name (v5)
To sum up, here are six fundamental truths about the gospel. Its origin is God the Father and its substance Jesus Christ his Son. Its attestation is Old Testament Scripture and its scope all the nations. Our immediate purpose in proclaiming it is to bring people to the obedience of faith, but our ultimate goal is the greater glory of the name of Jesus Christ. Or, to simplify these truths by the use of six prepositions, we can say that the good news is the gospel of God, about Christ, according to Scripture, for the nations, unto the obedience of faith, and for the sake of the Name.
"
Alas! and did my Savior bleed?
And did my Sovereign die?
Would He devote that sacred head
For such a worm as I?
Was it for crimes that I have done
He groaned upon the tree?
Amazing pity! Grace unknown!
And love beyond degree!
Well might the sun in darkness hide
And shut its glories in,
When Christ, the mighty Maker, died
For man the creature's sin.
Thus might I hide my blushing face
While His dear cross appears;
Dissolve my heart in thankfulness,
And melt mine eyes to tears.
But drops of grief can ne'er repay
The debt of love I owe:
Here, Lord, I give myself away -
'Tis all that I can do!
From verse 12 to verse 83 Moses describes the offerings that each of the twelve tribes of Israel brought to the tabernacle when it was first dedicated to the Lord.
But here's the amazing thing. There are 93 words in the description of what each tribe brought as an offering. And all 93 words are repeated verbatim for each of the 12 tribes. Twelve times he says exactly the same thing. Twelve times! Exactly the same 93-word description for each tribe's offering!
Why?
Gordon Wenham answers: "It seems likely that a theological purpose underlies his wordiness."
The purpose he says is "to emphasize as strongly as possible that every tribe had an equal stake in the worship of God, and that each was fully committed to the support of the tabernacle and its priesthood." (Numbers, p. 93)
Yes. But let the method of emphasis sink in. Moses could have used Wenham's words and saved time, space, and tedium. He could have said, "Every tribe has an equal stake in worship and all are to be fully committed to the tabernacle." That's 18 words. But he used 12 x 93 = 1,116 words.
Here are some lessons:
Matthew 15:21 And Jesus went away from there and withdrew to the district
of Tyre and Sidon. 22 And behold, a Canaanite woman from that
region came out and was crying, "Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son
of David; my daughter is severely oppressed by a demon." 23 But
he did not answer her a word. And his disciples came and begged
him, saying, "Send her away, for she is crying out after us."
24 He answered, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house
of Israel." 25 But she came and knelt before him, saying,
"Lord, help me." 26 And he answered, "It is not right to take
the children's bread and throw it to the dogs." 27 She said,
"Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from
their masters' table." 28 Then Jesus answered her, "O woman,
great is your faith! Be it done for you as you desire." And her
daughter was healed instantly.
Everett F. Harrison: Expositor's Bible Commentary: Romans
James D. G. Dunn: Word biblical commentary, Romans
Douglas Moo: NIV Application Commentary, New Testament: Romans
On page 2 in the first volume of Barnhouse's commentary on Romans he writes:
Luther wrote: "The epistle to the Romans is the true masterpiece of the New Testament and the very purest gospel, which is well worth and deserving that a Christian man should not only learn it by heart, word for word, but also that he should daily deal with it as the daily bread of men's souls. It can never be too much or too well read or studied, and the more it is handled the more precious it becomes, and the better it tastes."
One of the greatest fathers of the church, Chrysostom, had it read to him twice a week. Coleridge said that the epistle to the Romans is "the most profound writing that exists." The latter thought must not frighten the reader, for it is most certain that the truths of this epistle are those which have entered into the hearts of many simple men and given them a light and a life which was utterly beyond their natural capacities.
So with that said, we begin.
